A Promise Waiting To Be Fulflilled
by GinnyRox
Summary: When Hermione gets hit by a highly dangerous hex, little does she know it is the beginning of a horrible plot to destroy the wizarding world. And only two people can stop it.. AN: Next chappie is up!
1. Prologue: A Mysterious Happening

_A new point of view_

_A walk in your shoes_

_I wish I could get inside your head_

_To see what you see_

_When you look at me_

'_Cause I could have lived your life instead_

_--Stacie Orrico, Instead_

**DISCLAIMER: Come on people you know the drill……these characters don't belong to me (I wish they did) and neither does the song above. However one thing that does belong to me is the plot! **

**A/N: Hello all and welcome to my first story on A Promise Waiting To be Fulfilled! Now before you start reading I need to cover one more thing. First off, I know Hermione quit Divination in third year, but in this fiction she'll still be in it. The reason why though isn't honestly important. So with that said scroll down and read (and review)!**

Prologue: A Mysterious Happening

Hermione walked up the many steps leading to the Divination Tower, dreading the tutoring session she was assigned to do with Professor Trelawney with every reluctant step she took._ I can't believe I didn't quit this stupid class when I had the chance! _She thought angrily to herself.

As she turned and began to enter into the room her eyes fell on one much unexpected surprise. Draco Malfoy was apparently being tutored also and immediately their eyes locked. Without saying anything Hermione sat in the desk to beside him (as it was the only one) and brought her attention to Professor Trelawney.

"As you both know the _noble _art of divination is very hard to master, but since you two are currently failing to grasp it we shall now go on the epic journey of getting in touch with your inner eyes, by practicing our crystal gazing," She said dramatically.

Hermione rolled her eyes and focused on the crystal ball in front of her. The ball was only filled with its usual swirling haze. No matter how hard she tried to see something more this was all she could find within it. Frustrated she put her head down on her arms.

"What's the matter mudblood? Upset that you're actually failing a subject?" Malfoy taunted.

At this Hermione raised her head and replied, "I don't know if you noticed, Malfoy, but this is Divination and I really couldn't care less what I got in this class. " She turned back to her crystal ball and she swore at that moment she saw the Dark Mark inside, but then she blinked and it disappeared. _Was that what I thought it was? No, I must be imaging things. _Hermione thought to herself.

"Well, if you don't care then why are you taking this tutoring session so seriously?" Malfoy retorted.

"I have a reputation to withhold that's why! Do you know what its like for everyone to set a standard that you have to constantly live up to?" Hermione said losing her temper.

"Yes," Malfoy murmured too softly for anyone to hear. Simultaneously there was a shatter of glass. Professor Trelawney had dropped her crystal ball, but that wasn't all, she also had gone rigid with a distant look in her eye.

"Around the corner trouble awaits,

A Quest against Time begins.

Two can only oppose this plight

The threat to both worlds,

Muggle and magic kind."

These words were spoken by Professor Trelawney, except that her voice was un- familiarly deep. _Could it be, _thought Hermione,_ that Professor Trelawney is a seer? _Before Hermione or Draco could say ordo anything Professor Trelawney snapped out of her trance and dismissed them.

Hermione ran out of the room and down the numerous steps until she was as far from the Divination Tower as possible. She found herself on the Hogwarts grounds where a light breeze had been beckoning her outside all day. She found an oak tree and sat down in front of it trying to forget everything that happened in the past hour, but not succeeding for some reason.

On day later……..

Draco sat staring at his dinner trying to figure out what exactly had happened the day before. No matter what he seemed to do Draco couldn't forget the expression on Hermione's face after she heard Professor Trelawney's outburst. It was one of pure shock and disbelief that was etched onto her facial features. Something told him that Hermione knew about what had happened yesterday and he was going to find out no matter what.

He got up from the Slytherin house table and started walking towards the path that led to the common room. He was just about to turn to the path going down to the dungeons when a sight before him stopped him in his tracks.

There was Hermione walking in the opposite direction, but just as he was about to go ask her about what had happened the other day, he heard a whisper from a couple of fellow Slytherins in front of him. "Detraccion El Mal," one of the Slytherin boys whispered aiming the hex at Hermione. Draco watched in unrealized horror, as Hermione dropped to the ground. The Slytherins ran off to the common room not knowing that he had been watching.

Draco looked around to make sure the corridor was empty. After he knew it was he ran to Hermione's form to see if she was dead. _Granger can't be dead, there's only one curse for that. _Draco thought logically. With immense hesitation Draco picked her up and carried her to the hospital wing.

**A/N: Okay so what did you think? I don't mind some constructive criticism as I'm sure I need it. Just as long as you review!**


	2. Chapter 1: Draco's Discovery

"It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves" – William Shakespeare

**Another Disclaimer: Lets see Harry Potter characters don't belong to me nor does the quote three guesses what's left……the plot of course, which does belong to me………**

Chapter One: Draco's Discovery

Once Draco had taken Hermione to the Hospital Wing, he set out directly to the Dungeons to seek out Professor Snape. The whole way he was thinking so hard that he wasn't paying attention to his surroundings. _I've never heard of that hex that was used on Granger. I know dark magic when I see it though, _Draco reflected to himself. He jumped when a blast of cold air hit him as he entered the dungeons. He turned right and stopped in front of Professor Snape's office, knocked sharply to indicate his impatience.

The door opened slightly to reveal Professor Snape's solemn face peeking out. He opened the door fully to let Draco in without a word. Draco seated himself at the chair across from Snape's desk, and then turned to watch Snape waiting for him to say something.

"Well, Draco, what is the meaning of you paying me this visit at this time of night?" Professor Snape asked evenly with no emotion shown in his words.

Draco faltered for a moment, trying to decide what he should say. "Professor, I need a pass to the restricted section to help me find a term that may help me further in my studies of the _Dark Arts._" Draco put particular emphasis on the words 'dark arts' for effect. Of course, since everyone expected Draco to become a Death Eater he had to play the part of pursuing it. In reality there was nothing in the whole World that could convince him to become one of those bloodthirsty slaves just for the sake of the family name.

Professor Snape's face twisted into an unpleasant smirk at Draco's request. "Why of course, anything for a future Death Eater," Snape reasoned while moving towards his desk to get a piece of parchment and a quill. He handed Draco two pieces of parchment (one being an excuse for being in the halls past curfew in case he were to run into a prefect and the other for the restricted section).

"Goodbye Professor. Have a great Christmas break," Draco said without meaning it. He sauntered out of the door and smirked to himself once outside at his triumph. He walked back to the Slytherin common room, anticipating tomorrow when he would find the answer to the question that was nagging him ever since a couple of hours ago.

---

As soon as Draco woke up the next day, he got dressed, retrieved the note Snape wrote and headed straight to the library. He showed the note to a suspicious Madam Pince who finally nodded to show her consent to let him into the restricted section.

After looking through many books, Draco finally found one that sounded very promising, it was called _Rare Hexes and Their Properties. _He flipped through many pages of hexes and spells until he found the one that he had been looking for.

_The Detracción El Mal Hex: A highly dangerous hex used to take away the evilness in any human being. This evilness then turns into the exact shape of the original human figure and causes much chaos to gain power. When one is hit by this hex they will simply faint. The effects of this duplicate are still yet to be discovered; no one knows the counter-curse to undo this hex._

Shocked, Draco stared at what he just read, still trying to comprehend what he read as what really lay on the page before him. He dog-eared the page and slammed it closed as he went to check it out.

---

Hermione sat all alone (since Ron, Harry, and Ginny were at the Burrow) in the Great Hall eating her dinner. Somehow she had finally gotten the fussy Madam Pomfrey to release her from the Hospital Wing. She plunked down her fork as something Madam Pomfrey said popped into her mind. _You were found unconscious in the corridor by Draco Malfoy who brought you here. _ Apparently Madam Pomfrey saw Draco carrying her there with her own eyes, but Hermione was still having a hard time believing this. _Why would Malfoy do that we're enemies, _Hermione thought desperately. _Well, things have been different since yesterday, when we heard that prophecy. Maybe he feels differently about you. _Hermione gasped and shook her head to try and clear that menacing thought.

She looked up across the room at the Slytherin table to see Draco laughing with his two cronies. She became immersed in watching him, his white hair hanging over his eyes occasionally while his silver-grey irises sparkled with mirth. She jumped when she felt an owl peck at her arm. He was dark brown with large, mysterious eyes; she looked down to see he was carrying a letter. She untied it quickly and watched the owl fly off. _It can't be from Mum and Dad since I've never seen that owl before, _Hermione thought.

She tore open the letter hastily, curious to see what was inside. She read the following words:

_Dear Hermione,_

_Please meet me in the Room of Requirement on Monday at seven o'clock p.m . It is really urgent that you come, as I have something very important to tell you. Please be sure to be there like I said before. I will be waiting._

_Anonymous _

Hermione didn't know what to make of the letter. Should she go? What if it was a trap of some sort? Little did she know as she thought these things that she was being watched.

**Author's Note: What will Hermione decide? Well its all in the next chapter so now all I ask of you is some feedback. Review and tell me what you think.**


	3. Chapter 2: The Meetings

I wish I could remember the first day,

First hour, first moment of your meeting me;

It seemed to mean so little, meant so much!

- Christina Rossetti, First Day

**Disclaimer: The poem above doesn't belong to me, these characters don't belong to me either…the only thing that I own is this plot…. and I'm proud of it! **

Chapter Two: The Meeting

_One day later….._

Hermione treaded briskly to the Room of Requirement trying to fight off the anxious feeling that was threatening to make her turn around and flee to the Gryffindor common room. _Whoever this person is they're no threat to me, _Hermione reassured herself. _I might as well go confront Anonymous now rather than later when who knows what will happen._ She stopped in front of the blank wall and started pacing in front of the wall three times while thinking the same thing repeatedly. _I need a place to meet Anonymous,_ Hermione thought.

She turned around the third time to see a door had formed. She took a deep breath and entered the room. Upon entering Hermione looked around to see a cozy looking room with a fire crackling invitingly and two cushioned bean bags centered in front of it. One of them was being occupied by none other than Draco Malfoy.

"Malfoy, what are you doing here!" Hermione yelped in surprise, slowly backing away towards the door.

"I thought you'd be able to figure that one out. I'm here to meet you," He stated calmly.

Hermione turned to exit the room, but before she could she felt a hand on her arm, pulling her away from the door. Draco placed himself in front of the door acting as a barrier.

Bewildered by his actions Hermione spat out, "What do you want from me?"

"Granger, you know what I want, for once I'd like someone to listen to what I have to say," Draco said bluntly, an edge of impatience in his voice.

A puzzled look crossed Hermione's face as she tried to comprehend what he just said. She turned away from him for a moment trying to think of what to do. _Come on Hermione your practical, your supposed be the one who knows what to do. _Hermione pressured herself.

She opened her mouth to say something but before she could she heard Draco say, "Do you know what happened yesterday when you fainted?"

"No, I haven't the slightest idea," Hermione said softly, while remembering waking up in the hospital wing wondering why she was there.

"I do," Draco paused watching Hermione turn around and stare straight at him her face hardening. "I was going back to my common room after dinner yesterday and I saw some Slytherins hex you."

"We've been enemies for five years, how can you expect me to believe you?" Hermione said icily, while she pushed Draco out of the way and ran out of the door to her spot by the lake. It seemed like in the past two days she had been running away from everything.

Draco lay sprawled out on the floor where Hermione had pushed him. _Who knew Granger had such strength,_ He thought wearily while not bothering to get up.He closed his eyes letting his thoughts run free in his head. _It is funny how all my life I've been morphed into to what my friends and family want me to be, but when I try to be something else I'm just pushed away and not heard._ He thought drowsily, just before he fell asleep, spiraling into dreams of a brown haired girl with dark cinnamon eyes and a prophecy.

_Two days later…_

The whole week continued like a cat and mouse chase. Draco was playing the role of the cat, trying to show Hermione the book where he had found the entry. While Hermione was the mouse who merely wanted things to go back to how they used to be between her and Draco.

_I can't pretend these last few days haven't happened, _Draco thought to himself as he walked along the Hogwarts grounds, _I may not like Granger, hell lets be honest I hate her, but I hate Voldemort even more and I won't allow him to use people to do his dirty work. That's why I have to warn the Mudblood. _

He descended the hill and stopped for a moment to take in his surroundings. The sky was dark and gloomy with many black clouds covering every single star in the sky. The lake bellow was perfectly still as were the trees and the tall grass. The whole scene greatly reminded Draco of how it was like at the mansion; depressing, lonely, and full of angst. Yet somehow he was drawn here as though the place was offering him the sympathy he needed.

When Draco finally started nearing the lake he noticed a silhouette leaning on an oak tree. He walked closer to realize it was Hermione and stopped walking; he whipped out his wand to summon the book _Rare Hexes and Their Properties _to show her the evidence.

Draco sat beside Hermione, but before he could say anything Hermione talked first.

"What do you want Malfoy? " She asked without looking up.

"To show you something," Draco answered sincerely while fingering the cover of the old book.

Draco opened the book to the table of contents then scanned it to find the page he was looking for. Once he found it and opened it to the Detraccion El Mal hex, handed it to her.

"I saw those Slytherins use that hex on you with my own eyes." He stated in a defiant tone, after Hermione had read the entry.

Hermione looked into his eyes quizzically, unsure of what to believe. They sat that way for a while staring into each others eyes not realizing what they were doing. A roar of thunder startled both Draco and Hermione and rain started to pour down that even the oak tree could not shield.

"Have you ever heard the muggle saying 'don't judge a book by its cover'? " Hermione asked slowly.

Draco shook his head implying that he hadn't.

"It means that instead of just automatically judging something or someone upon first impression you get to know them or try it out before you decide anything. That's what I'm going to give you too. A chance." Hermione said with a small smile.

**A/N: Tada! Well what do you think? Better than the first version (I've extended the original chapter two into this longer one for those of you who didn't read the original ) in my opinion. Of course my opinion doesn't really matter too much does it? Your does…please review! I'm on the verge of deleting this story since I'm not getting too much feedback….**


	4. Chapter 3: The Event of Chaos

What is the feelin' takin' over?  
Thinkin' no one could open my door  
Surprise...It's time  
To feel what's real  
What happened to Miss Independent?  
No more the need to be defensive  
Goodbye, old you  
When love is true

- Kelly Clarkson, Miss Independent

**Disclaimer: All characters read here belong to the author of Harry Potter, the famous Jo Rowling; I'm just a fan making my own plot using her characters. The song above belongs to Kelly Clarkson.**

**A/N: Sorry about the long wait for this chapter you guys, but a lot has been going on with me coming back from Canada. I hope you all enjoy this chapter because it's dedicated to everyone who's read and reviewed this story! I hope you like it!**

Chapter Three: The Event of Chaos

Hermione sat eating breakfast among all Gryffindors who had stayed for Christmas break. _Things here seem so odd without Ron, Harry, and Ginny to talk to._ Hermione thought sadly. Then the event of yesterday night came into her mind, _why did I say I was going to give Dr—I mean Malfoy another chance? Maybe it was because of how desperate he looked. _

Hermione snapped out of her reverie as she saw an owl land next to her plate with _The Daily Prophet. _She gently untied the string holding the newspaper to the owl's foot, then held out a Knut for him to take. The owl took it then flew off.

For a moment Hermione examined the front page with shock. There was a picture with an unconscious body lying on the floor, and then Aurors began to group around it. On the right side of it the article read:

_Trouble in London_

_Yesterday in Diagon Alley three murders were committed around the time of midnight. Aurors claim that it must be the work of Death Eaters, but no followers of You-Know-Who were found. There was also no evidence that the killing curse was performed on the sufferers. Victims of these murders are the following people: Tiberius Ogden, Bathilda Bagshot, and Miriam Strout. _

Hermione looked up to find the Great Hall deserted. It was eerily quiet and Hermione had the feeling that any sound originated would echo off the walls like a cave. Hermione turned back to the article.

"Three murders," Hermione thought out loud." And no Death Eaters found…Something doesn't seem right."

"I agree," drawled a voice behind her.

Hermione jumped and turned around to see Draco standing before her dressed in a green sweater and black pants.

"You don't know anything else about those murders?" Hermione asked suspiciously.

Draco sat down beside her on the bench before saying," I have a theory about what could've happened."

"Which is?" Hermione prompted him curiously.

"Do you remember what I told you last night?" Draco asked looking straight into her soft brown eyes.

"Of course I do,"

"Well," he continued. "It could be possible that the hex performed on you worked and _it _murdered those people."

Hermione stayed silent considering what he had just said deeply._ He could be right, but even if he is what am I supposed to do? _Hermione thought. A few more moments of silence went by slowly.

"There could be an anti-hex," Hermione said softly while getting off the bench.

"An anti-hex?" Draco asked incredulously, looking as though he was resisting the urge to smile.

"Yes, for something like this there has to be," Hermione said confidently." Anything that is done can be undone."

Hermione watched as Draco turned to look out the window with faraway look in his eyes.

"Do you want to go outside?" Hermione asked.

"Sure."

Once Draco and Hermione were outside they saw the ground covered in white.

"It's snowing!" Hermione exclaimed, forgetting who she was with.

Draco watched Hermione twirling around in the snow, a smirk creeping onto his face. He bent down and gathered a ball of snow and threw it at her spinning figure. It her on the back and sent her crashing into the snow.

"Hey, that hurt!" Hermione yelled in a mock tone. This only made Draco laugh even harder.

Once he finally stopped laughing he said, "You should have seen your…" Draco was interrupted from his boasting by a giant snow ball that hit him on the chest.

They continued their snowball fight until Hermione collapsed onto the snow and called, "I forfeit."

Draco sat down next to her. He watched other students throw snowballs at each other and make snowman. There was something about watching from the outside, seeing into other people's life for a short moment that drew his curiosity. Maybe it was because he could forget about himself for awhile, almost like living in a different world. A world that wasn't his.

"I remember," Hermione murmured almost as if she were talking to herself.

"What do you mean 'You remember'?" Draco asked looking at her slightly puzzled.

"When I woke up in the Hospital Wing, I couldn't remember what had happened the day before." Hermione paused before continuing, "I couldn't remember getting hit by that hex either."

"So that's why you didn't believe me."

"It all makes sense now," Hermione said slipping into another reverie.

Draco studied her thoroughly, noticing that her hair was now wavy instead of the bushy mess it had been in the past. Her eyes were a lot lighter than he had thought, turning out to be similar to topaz.

He was so intent on studying he didn't realize he was getting closer and closer to her face. Hermione looked up startled to find him so close. Then he kissed her. A kiss full of longing and need.

**A/N: Well what do you think? I certainly think this was my best chapter written yet! Please review!**


	5. Chapter 4: The Unitization

"When you have seen as much of life as I have, you will not underestimate the power of obsessive love."

-J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince

**Disclaimer: Both the quote and the characters of this fan fiction belong to the awesome J.K. Rowling!**

**A/N: Well here we have chapter four, as you can see! Hope you all enjoy it! **

Chapter Four: The Unitization

_What was I thinking,_ Draco scolded himself, _when I kissed her? _Draco sat in the Slytherin common room, brooding about what had happened a few hours ago. He saw in his mind Hermione's startled face, as he backed away from her then broke out in a run back to the common room.

Draco looked at his watch on his wrist and noticed it was time for dinner. He didn't want to go, but he willed himself to anyway. He walked out of the common room, down a few flights of moving stairs, until he found himself just outside the doors of the Great Hall.

He entered the hall to be greeted by a sudden hush of voices and noticed many eyes staring at him with curiosity. Draco walked over to the Slytherin table, trying to ignore all the whispers.

"Did he really kiss a Mudblood?" asked one Slytherin to another one, sitting beside him.

"Sure he doesn't like Muggleborns," A voice commented sarcastically from the other side of the room.

"What about _her_? What a traitor she is, being with a Death Eater."

Draco looked down at his empty plate until finally the Great Hall returned to its usual noisiness. _I don't care what they think. _Draco thought to himself, looking up to throw a glare at whoever had still been staring at him. He did a double-take to see Hermione was the one had been watching him. They held eye contact for a moment, until Draco looked away.

_I have to forget the events of these past days,_ Draco told himself sternly._ My father won't stand for this, any of it. _ Draco sat through the rest of dinner, just waiting for it to end so he could go to bed.

---

Hermione walked back to the Gryffindor common room all the while thinking. _What is going on? Before Christmas break everything was normal. Draco Malfoy despised me for being a Muggleborn and a know-it-all_. _And now everything's different. _Hermione stopped in front of the Fat Lady and instead of saying the password, sunk down beside the portrait and closed her eyes. She was just about to fall asleep when she heard a voice.

"Tell me the password!" the Fat Lady ordered.

"Bezoar," Hermione grumbled, then entered the common room.

She laid on a red couch in front of a crackling fire. After a few long moments, she fell asleep.

---

Hermione woke up to find herself sprawled over the sofa. She got up, straightened her clothes, and then went to the dormitory bathroom to fix her hair.

Once she was done, Hermione walked out of the common room and decided to skip breakfast. Instead she decided to go outside and walk around the grounds.

The ground outside was still covered with snow. Instead of walking to the lake, Hermione decided to go to the Quidditch Pitch since it was most likely deserted because of the weather.

Hermione had never liked Quidditch, but had always wondered what it would be like to fly. She had always been afraid of heights and had never had time to conquer that fear since she had to concentrate on her school work.

Hermione looked across the field to see someone holding a broomstick, looking as though they were just about to take off. She watched as the figure zoomed through the air like it didn't have a care in the world. _I can't say the same thing about myself though, _Hermione thought, her mind wandering towards the thing she least wanted to think about.

A while later she saw the figure land back on the ground. Hermione edged closer wanting to see who it was. She recognized Draco's retreating back and started to follow him.

"Malfoy," Hermione said softly.

He turned around, his face hardening when he saw who it was. "What do you want, Mudblood?"

"Returning to old names, I see. Is that what you like to do, Draco, kiss people then treat them like they're below you?"

Draco opened his mouth to reply then closed it when he realized what she had called him. "Don't you have some books to study, Granger?" he replied half-heartedly.

"No, I don't," Hermione said. "I am, however, waiting for an explanation from you!"

"Well, don't waste your time then because you're not getting it!" Draco yelled stubbornly.

"I don't know about you, but I'm not going to pretend like all of this never happened!" Hermione said, losing her patience.

"I am," Draco said evenly.

"Tell me, Draco, whose side are you on? I think I'm not the only one who's confused about that," Hermione said angrily.

She turned, about to walk away, but she said one more thing softly, "What about the prophecy?"

Hermione then ran all the way back to Hogwarts, taking out all her anger on herself, making her go faster, until she got to her dormitory. She then did something she rarely ever did: cry.

---

Draco just stood there, his mind replaying their argument over and over again. He was trying to figure out what she had meant, but then his mind thought of something else she had mentioned: _The prophecy. How did it go again?_ Draco spent a few moments trying to remember it. Then it finally came back to him.

_There's only one place I can go now, and that's the library. This time Hermione's coming with me._ Draco walked back to Hogwarts in high hopes of finding her. But she was no where to be found.

A half an hour later, he finally remembered one place that he hadn't looked: the Room of Requirement. He walked in front of it three times repeating one thought. _I need to find Hermione._

The door appeared, and Draco went in. Inside the room was filled with stacks of books reaching the ceiling. Amidst all the books was Hermione perusing one of the many volumes.

"What are you looking for?" Draco asked as an attempt of causality.

"Why should you care?" Hermione retorted, not having to look up to know it was him.

"Look Hermione," he began, "I was only doing all that because I didn't want my father to find out about us getting along."

"So you start calling me a Mudblood, instead of explaining?"

"I've been thinking," Draco continued, ignoring her last comment. "I hate both You-Know-Who and my father. I've been taught to be obedient to them, though. But I realized that I shouldn't be doing there dirty work when I don't want to. I should be trying to get rid of them."

"Good for you then," Hermione said quietly. "But I think you're forgetting something."

"Malfoys do not-," Draco began.

"Say it," Hermione interrupted a small smile forming on her face.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Draco said.

"Apology accepted." Hermione confirmed. "Look what I found!"

She beckoned Draco over beside her and gave him the book. Draco started reading.

_Unitization Potion: How to Make and Use It_

_Ingredients;_

_Alligator skin (grind carefully)_

_Aspholdel Root (slice into small pieces)_

_Belladonna (three leafs)_

_Billywig (dried sting)_

_Frog Legs (three sets)_

_Graphorn (one crumbled horn)_

_Lionfish spine (pick bones apart)_

_Moonstone (yellow)_

_Unicorn tail hair (one)_

_Dead spider_

_Directions: Stir constantly for two hours, for the duration of fourteen days. Then, let it settle for one day. Drink in the light of the full moon at the time of midnight._

_Description: the Unitization Potion serves as an Anti-hex to the Detraccionelmal hex. The making of this potion must be made precisely to the directions or the effects could be dangerous. If done correctly, the potion takes thirty-six hours to accomplish its purpose._

"Do you think we can make this? It seems rather advanced," Draco asked doubtfully.

"Of course we can!" Hermione reassured him. "After all, I do have top grades and you're great at Potions."

"There's one problem with that plan. Where are we going to get the ingredients?" Draco pointed out.


	6. Chapter 5: The Suspicions of Snape

Your questioning eyes are sad. They seek to know my meaning  
as the moon would fathom the sea.  
I have bared my life before your eyes from end to end, with  
nothing hidden or held back. That is why you know me not.

-Rabindranath Tagore, the Gardener

**Disclaimer: The poem above does not belong to me and nor do the characters in this fan fiction. They do belong to J.K. Rowling and her only.**

**A/N: Hello! Well here's the next chapter! I hope you all enjoy it and thank you to those of you who have taken the time to read and/or review this story! Once again, this one is for you guys!**

Chapter Five: The Suspicions of Snape

"Well, there are two places we can get these ingredients: One in our potions kit and secondly in Snape's stock." Hermione replied, watching Draco's face carefully for a reaction.

"I must warn you, Snape keeps a good watch over his ingredients." Draco said in a neutral tone.

"All we have to do is steal a little bit at a time, so he won't notice until it's too late." She assured him confidently.

"Fine then, since I don't have any other ideas, when do we start?"

"It depends where Snape is. If he is out of his office than we could do it now or you could distract him, if he is there." Hermione suggested.

"Let's go and see where he is" Draco decided, "Then we'll figure out what to do next."

Inconspicuously, Hermione lead Draco out of the Room of Requirement, until they were just outside of Snape's office door.

She turned back to him and said quietly, "Pretend that you just caught me hexing someone in the halls and that you came to report me to him." She put her fist near the door, getting ready to knock on it.

Hermione then felt a hand over hers and heard Draco whisper in her ear," No. He won't believe that at all."

She let him lead her farther away from Snape's office, as to not be overheard. Hermione was all the while conscious of his hand still securing hers.

"You don't seem to understand." Draco said his tone, foreboding, "Severus Snape is one of the Dark Lord's most trusted servants. We can't just walk in there and distract him..."

Just then the office door opened and out walked Snape, accessing the scene before him with a look of cruel amusement marked on his face. His eyes darted to Draco and then stayed on Hermione for a long tense moment before turning to walk away.

Hermione felt a strong shudder go down her spine, while her knees started to buckle. The next moment she found herself sitting on the floor, the wall behind her, supporting her back. She closed her eyes trying to get rid of the picture of Snape's eyes locked to hers for that one moment.

A while later Hermione opened her eyes to see two gray ones looking right back at her. Draco was sitting beside her with an expression she had never seen before. One of concern.

"Hermione," He said her name with a soft intensity. "What happened?"

For a moment Hermione just stared at him, slightly dazed, until her mind registered what he had said.

"I don't know," she said with slight difficulty. "I felt a tremble in my spine, and then my knees collapsed."

Draco then did something that was entirely unforeseen. He reached out his arms to sooth Hermione with an embrace. She welcomed the comfort he offered, without even thinking about it.

---

Draco walked fast and quickly to Snape's office. _Now is the only time we have to do this_, he thought wearily. Draco had left dinner early so he could do the deed himself, while Hermione had agreed to stay behind and make sure Snape didn't leave early for any reason, whatsoever.

He stopped at the office door and tried the knob to see if the door was locked. Of course it was. Draco dug through his pocket until he found his wand. He took a moment to feel the familiar ridges of the wood before he remembered why he was here.

"Obstructus Barriosa."

After a few long moments, the door opened with a slight groan and Draco slipped in stealthily. He looked around the office he knew like an old friend; because of the many times Snape had summoned him into it.

In the middle of the room was Snape's desk. Surrounding it were many strange artifacts he had collected over the years. On the right side of the desk was a door he knew led to Snape's potion store of ingredients.

He narrowly dodged bumping into a shelf. The room was lacking any source of light, making it quite hard to see. Draco reached for his wand. Then he said the lighting charm, "Lumos".

Finally, he reached the door and tried the knob once again. The door opened cooperatively, this time. In front of him were countless shelves with bottles holding many different substances, all labeled, and ordered in alphabetical sequence. Luckily, Draco had memorized all the ingredients that they hadn't found in their potion kits.

He took only half of what was needed and stuffed them all inside his robe, remembering what Hermione had said. With that he made sure everything was back to the way it was before he came and left the room.

Once Draco was outside of the office Draco locked the door again. Then he walked back to the common room, secretly celebrating his success. His mind was set on the following day when he could tell Hermione of his triumph.

---

The next day, Hermione sat at the Gryffindor table awaiting the signal from Draco, to leave lunch early. She looked down at her plate examining her poked at food. Food was the last thing on her mind at the moment. _I once went into Snape's office, but that was a long time ago. Things are different now, a lot different. Snape holds more of a threat then he used to. What happens if I can't find what we're looking for?_ Hermione thought nervously.

Yesterday Draco had told her what they still needed, so she was prepared enough. _This is ridiculous,_ Hermione thought annoyed. _I can't let what happened yesterday prevent me from doing this!_ She took a deep breath before looking up to see Draco watching her from across the Great Hall. The signal.

She got up discreetly, all the while feeling Draco's reassuring gaze on her. Hermione strolled out of the Great Hall and down to the Dungeons, where she hugged her arms to her chest, because of the abrupt chill.

Hermione unlocked the office door and went inside. She lit her wand and found her way to the stock. Then she opened the door and got the rest of the ingredients, but she shrunk them so they could fit in her pockets. Hermione was halfway across the room when light spilled into the space. That could mean only one thing: someone else was in the room.

Instinctively and without thinking Hermione said the first thing that came into her mind, "Draco?"

She was face-to-face with Snape instead. The strange thing was that his features were calm instead of angry as she would have expected him to feel, seeing her in his domain. His eyes never left hers.

All of the sudden memories started to resurface in her mind. Draco sitting beside her in the snow his face being drawn closer to hers. A black stormy day, rain pouring down in sheets. A book appeared that said _Hexes and Their Properties _and it was just about to open when Hermione realized what was going on.

"NO!" She yelled fiercely, while averting her eyes and creating a wall in her mind that blocked her memories from Snape.

She quickly ran out of the office, making her way towards the Room of Requirement.Her haven of late. She felt herself bump into someone and found herself looking at Draco.

"What took you so long?" he asked with a tinge of impatience.

Hermione gasped one word that seemed to explain it all, "Snape."

**A/N: This has to be one of the longest chapters I have ever written! But I really enjoyed writing it anyways. Do you think I put enough detail into it?**


	7. Chapter 6: The Prefects' Bathroom

And life is a road that I wanna keep going  
Love is a river, I wanna keep flowing  
Life is a road, now and forever, wonderful journey  
I'll be there when the world stops turning  
I'll be there when the storm is through  
In the end I wanna be standing  
At the beginning with you

-Donna Lewis, At the Beginning

**Disclaimer: The song above is not owned by me and nor are the characters in this fan fiction. The song belongs to Donna Lewis and the characters belong to Jo Rowling! Thanks to both of them for letting me lend their stuff! Oh, and the only thing that does belong to me is the plot.**

**A/N: Hello, I hope you like updates because you're looking at one right now! I know that sounds dorky, but I couldn't think of anything else to say. Anyways on to the story!**

Chapter Six: The Prefects' Bathroom

Hermione and Draco sat under the oak tree in Hogwarts grounds. It was a cold day with the sun barely peaking out in the sky, the snow on the ground only slightly softer. The lake splayed out before them.

"So where do you think we should make the potion?" Hermione asked trying to make conversation out of the silence.

"Probably in the Room of Requirement," came his drawled reply.

"I've been considering it for a while and I think it would be better, if we made it in one of the Prefects' bathrooms." Hermione looked over at Draco to see his eyes watching her before she continued, "There'd be less of a chance of being caught because less people would know the password."

"What about the Prefects though?" He asked while he turned to see Hermione fingering the snow beneath her. She promptly looked up to meet his gaze.

"We are prefects our selves, you know. If we were to come across anyone we could make up an excuse." Hermione commented.

"Yes, but do we need anymore people getting suspicious? That's the real problem." Draco told her, pointedly referring to Hermione's encounter with Snape.

"Wherever we make the potion, you should know that we have a fair chance of being caught." Hermione retorted.

Silence was followed by this slight outburst. Both of them were a little taken-aback by her harshness. Hermione turned away from Draco her head leaning against the oak tree and closed her eyes not wanting to hear his reaction.

Draco gripped her shoulders and turned her around so she was facing him again. His expression was gloomy, Hermione observed, when she opened her eyes. For once he didn't say anything, but just stared at her straight on. His face became harder to read as the moments went by. The whole grounds seemed to be frozen in time, all of a sudden.

"That's true," He said, stiffly. Draco's hands were still clamped on her shoulders drawing them closer together than usual. _He looks haunted,_ Hermione thought noticing how his light hair covered his eyes slightly and how he stayed so still. "Spies."

"I think you have forgotten that I've been friends with Harry Potter for six years now and he's a magnet for trouble. I think I can handle it." Hermione joked trying to lighten the mood.

Draco's right side of his mouth lifted upward creating a small, askew smile that didn't fully reach his eyes. Hermione's face was relieved.

"So when is the next full moon?" Draco asked.

Hermione's face turned calculating as she figured it out in her head; her brown hair covered a side of her face as she thought, "Twelve a.m. on Christmas, we have exactly fifteen days to make the potion."

Wait a minute, does this mean that we are going to make it in the Prefects bathroom or not?" Hermione asked cautiously.

"The Prefects bathroom will be fine, since you insist upon it."

---

Later on, that day, Draco sat in the vacant Prefect's bathroom. The ingredients were all gathered around him including: a cauldron (which would contain the potion of course) and the book with the potion directions in it. He picked up the Alligator skin and was just reaching for the grinder when he heard the door open.

Foot steps echoed throughout the vast lavatory coming closer each second. Draco fumbled hastily to hide all the evidence. One thought went through his mind at that moment: _Just like I expected, spies for the Dark Lord, I bet it is Snape. _He felt like he was being watched, he turned around slowly dreading to acknowledge Snape's presence.

Instead, much to his relief, there stood Hermione in her Hogwarts uniform an expression of hesitation on her face. She looked around the room for a moment taking in the attributes of the area. The lofty ceiling that was painted baby blue with puffs of clouds scattered among it, the mirrored walls created many reflections of her and Draco, the wooden counter held spotless sinks that gleamed in the light, further down was a large bath tub that looked more like a pool and to the right, there were cubicles for the bathrooms each with its own lockable door. What really caught her attention though was the marbled floor: it wasn't in tiles, it was like one huge slab, and the color was a light ocean blue that seemed to go flawlessly with the ceiling.

"I forgot how grand this room looked; I haven't been in here for years." Hermione said her voice echoing faintly. She sat down across from Draco and started putting all the supplies for the potion between them.

"At the Malfoy Mansion we have rooms even more exquisite than this one," was his apathetic response.

"I'm sure you do, but for those of us in the lower classes this is amazing!" Hermione said appreciatively while she gestured to the area surrounding her, the mirrors mimicking her movement. "But you've never really told me what it's like to live at the Malfoy Mansion."

"I'm not sure I could tell you that. I wouldn't know how to describe it that well."

There was a pause in the conversation as Hermione finished grinding the Alligator skin and put it into the cauldron. She then started on the next ingredient before finally speaking.

"Okay then, how about this: start at the beginning and tell me a little bit at a time. Then I'll do the same the next day."

Draco nodded in agreement, his face turned serious as he considered where to begin. "There has always been a definition to the name of Malfoy, as you know. Malfoys are the rich family that has it all, their allegiance lies with You-Know-Who and it always will, they believe anyone that doesn't have the same ethnicity, bloodline, doesn't belong in the wizarding society, much less on the face of Earth." He looked up to see if Hermione was offended by the latter, but her face was mellow and patient waiting for him to continue.

"This was the law in both public and at the stifling prison some would call home. I was brought up to be an heir of the Malfoy estate, to act as my father acted and nothing less. My mother was the quiet one, always cooperative, never the one to speak her mind. The exception was me. She could be strict, there was no doubt about that, but there was more to her than just that. She was optimistic, always trying to convince me that father wanted the best for me. That I could never believe. She was protective, making excuses when father went to last resorts to get me to do what he wanted. "

"What about your father? You haven't mentioned him yet." Hermione pointed out, just as she moved on to the seventh ingredient.

"My father, now he was quite the character. He always knew how to wheedle people into letting him have his way. He made sure to make friends with the most important people in the wizarding world, so he could use them to his advantage whenever the fancy struck him. He had two jobs, one as a Death Eater and the other at the Ministry of Magic. And you could just tell that he had planned all his strategies in life before he would even take action. But out of all of his carefully mapped plans one of them went wrong. Me."

By now Hermione had finished submitting the elements into the cauldron and was now stirring the potion. The green contents swirled like a whirlpool as she continued. Draco took a moment to watch her; she seemed to be thinking about his narration so far.

"You can't stop now, you know, or the suspense will drive me mad!" She said smiling earnestly.

Draco's mouth tugged at the corners and he began to laugh. Hermione had never noticed his laughter before, it was so bubbly that if felt contagious and Hermione bit her lip to stop herself from laughing along with him.

When he finally regained his breath he answered her comment, "I couldn't have told it _that_ well." Nevertheless his mouth was curving into his oh-so-familiar smirk.

"And yet you did!" Hermione countered.

Draco looked down at his watch. "It's been two and a half hours, since we came in here. We should go."

Hermione took the cauldron and hid it in the cubby in the wooden counter. She conjured a key hole in the cabinet and a chain that held its key. Lifting up her hair she placed the chain around her neck. Draco watched her make her way to the exit, she turned around just as she was about to leave.

"I want you to meet me here at three o' clock tomorrow. Tomorrow's my day to start my story." Her eyes were serious waiting for his reply.

"Okay," Draco said and with that Hermione smiled and walked out the door.

---

Hermione sat in the Prefect's bathroom a half an hour early for their meeting. She had wanted to come here alone so she could consider what she could tell Draco about her life so far. _Compared to Draco's life I bet mine will sound dreadfully tedious._ Hermione thought.

She laid down on the icy marble gazing at the painted sky. Hermione just stayed there for a while, thinking back to memories in her life, and what they had meant to her. _I remember how I used to be so scared to go to the dentists' office, when Mum and Dad would take me to work. Those dentist tools looked really threatening back then, especially the one used for cavities! _Hermione couldn't help grinning at the image of her hiding underneath the dentist chair, her wild hair covering her face, while she tried to stay as still as possible so nobody would find her. _I was five years old then. _

Hermione heard the door open and sat up quickly. She reached for the chain around her neck and opened the cubby she had put the potion in yesterday. Draco came in and sat across from her, looking at her expectantly.

"It's your turn to stir the potion today while I tell the story." She stated shortly as she slid the potion within his reach and gave him the stirrer.

He said nothing as he began to do the blending of the potion. The silence was heavy with awkwardness.

"I don't know where to start."

"How about you start at the beginning?" He suggested, repeating what she had said the day before with a sly smile.

She grinned at the ease of what he had said. "Do you know what dentists are?" She asked, already guessing his reply.

"Not at all, as I've never experienced Muggle living." He answered, slight curiosity appearing on his face.

"Well, Muggles live in an entirely different way than us. They have careers as we do, they have school, and that pretty much sums up the similarities between the two worlds." Hermione paused trying to figure out how to continue. "Magic is non-existent for them. They have their own methods of accomplishing deeds such as transportation, chores, and so on.

"Anyways, a dentist is a profession in which people take care of others' teeth. Both of my parents work as that. "

"What was it like not knowing about magic?" Draco asked.

"It wasn't too different from how I live today, when I'm not here at Hogwarts. I went to a Muggle school, where I learned how to read and write. I learnt basics. I spent a lot more time with my parents, than I do now. We would travel to many different places in the world, like Germany and America, during the summer.

"But when I look back at that time of my life what stands out the most to me isn't the traveling that I once did more often than at the present or the Muggle schooling. What I can remember the most is my parents. On the weekends they would go bargain hunting, which is looking for things at cheaper prices, and they would always drag me along against my will. We would drive to many different towns in England, in high hopes of finding 'treasures', which is what my dad called the low cost items they bought non- stop. A few hours later I would be surrounded by all kinds of junk that would overflow the trunk of the car into the backseat where I sat." Hermione paused and her face seemed to light up at the memories of her parents' obsessive hobby.

"Your family sounds so odd to me. I can't seem to picture what it would be like to live a life like that." Draco said thoughtfully.

"I understand what you mean. Sometimes it is so hard to envision things you've never experienced. Almost like trying to view a faded photograph." She agreed with him, while her mind wandered back to the beginning of his story he had told her the day before.

"Everything changed the day I got my Hogwarts letter," Hermione continued her story; her voice had a rueful tone." I could feel a fence go up between my parents and me once they discovered the contents of the letter. We now lead different lives: My life an adventure at Hogwarts with my new friends Harry, Ron, and Ginny and theirs taking care of the office and the patients that came with it. The only thing that we really had in common was that we lived in the same house.

"I still loved them and I know they still loved me. Every time they asked about the Wizarding World or Hogwarts I had to either lie or not say anything at all. I was scared about how they would take the news about Voldemort and Harry. I still am afraid. I still haven't told them anything that is even close to the truth." Hermione was looking down at the floor as she uttered the last sentence, sadness apparent on her face.

Hermione felt water gathering in her eyes and tried her best to keep the tears in, but to no avail. She felt Draco beside her and chanced a fleeting look at him. His face was solemn.

"You were right, you know. About the 'Don't judge a book by its cover' saying." He murmured. "I wasn't sure what you meant at first by that because I assumed that a 'cover' of a book would show everything there was to know. But you showed me how terribly wrong I was."

Hermione looked up at him, her face was tinged a slight red from crying. Her eyes were still moist which seemed to accent the rich brown in her eyes. Draco reached out a hand to stroke her cheek softly and carefully as if he was touching porcelain. He then turned back to the potion to resume its stirring.

"What about you? You just stopped your story unexpectedly. I want you to continue." She said softly, deliberately not responding to what he had said before.

"Continue." He repeated." Do you remember where I left off?"

"You just finished talking about how your father seemed to have schemed how everything in his life was supposed to happen. How you were the one thing that didn't go according to plan."

"Right," He confirmed before proceeding with his tale. "In my family discipline was a necessity. I grew up as obedient as possible, in hopes to be just like my father one day. I was taught who to befriend and to what advantage, and also who to turn my back from. Everything was planted in front of me, everything unbelievably predictable and boring. That was my life, rolled out in front of me like a scroll of parchment just waiting to be read."

"Until recently, just this last summer things changed. In the Malfoy Manor father has made it a tradition that on every Sunday a Death Eater meeting is held. Many people attend: Crabbe, Goyle, Lestrange, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, Father, and numerous others. When I turned sixteen in order to become a Death Eater I had to attend all the meetings, every week."

"I remember sitting there at the spacious dinning room, endless platters of food lining up the long dinning table, listening to the Death Eaters' conversation. I never dared to speak or look up, afraid that I would meet You-Know-Who's gaze. Just being in the same room as the Dark Lord made me feel as though an unexplainable hostile feeling was suspended above me, waiting to consume me.

"I didn't understand why I felt this way; it seemed to go against all of my morals to feel such a strong feeling of revulsion against _Him_, the one who possessed my families' loyalties. But with every week the feeling grew stronger and I discovered that it was not only against You-Know-Who, but also in opposition to the whole thing. The way my father seemed to have my life plotted out before me when I didn't even have a say in the matter at all."

"So what happened in the end?" Hermione asked anxiously, doubt carved onto her features.

"Well," Draco threw a quick glance at his watch and stopped stirring the potion. "After the few weeks of training, my Death Eater ceremony arrived. Inside of me raged a battle between my logic and my impulse. Half of me believed that I didn't really care about the Dark Arts, that my father had just made me believe I did after all those years of persuasion. The other half wanted to still win my father over. As I stood at the entrance of the ballroom, where the ceremony would be held, the latter lost the battle. Dodging my father behind me, I ran down the many steps until I had made my way out of the house and into the pouring rain."

"I didn't make it very far when my father had caught up with me. A lot of yelling and curses were what followed, of course. But that was when I really understood that I couldn't become a Death Eater because I wanted to do something else with my life, even if it was unknown to me for a long time in the future what exactly that goal was."

Hermione took this news quite calmly, her face remained unsurprised. But a question was still tugging at her mind, anticipating an answer. " I still don't understand how you looked beyond your father's point of view after all the time he has spent controlling you."

" It wasn't easy at first, but over time I just learned."

---

The next twelve days went by fast. A sort of treaty was held between Draco and Hermione. They tried not to talk about the unwanted subjects such as Draco's aversion to his father and his customs and Hermione's relationship between her parents. Every now and then though one of brought up one of the subjects unintentionally. The conversation would go along these lines:

" You never did tell me what memories Snape saw the day you took your half of the ingredients from the store." Draco commented suddenly.

" He just saw insignificant ones, but they were enough to build his suspicions. He saw the _Rare Hexes and Their Properties _book. And..." Hermione trailed off here while she cast her eyes downward, examining the marble.

"And?"

" Nothing. Never mind." Hermione murmured her blush betraying her lie.

"Snape is a very close to my father, I'm sure you know. We can't let him find out anymore about what we're doing." Draco continued unaware of Hermione's blushing.

But overall most of the days were spent planning how they were going to get rid of the _Detraccionelmal_ hex if the potion didn't work and also arguing about the game Quidditch. Which Hermione thought to be a huge waste of time. While Draco valued playing Quidditch because of how challenging it was and the diversion it provided of _other_ things. Before either of them knew it, though, Christmas Eve had come.

**A/N: This chapter took me weeks to write! I'm really sorry about the hold up though. Blame it all on school, when you're in your freshman year the homework literally comes pouring in! So any thoughts, comments, and/or advice on this chapter? Anything? I would really appreciate it! **


	8. Chapter 7: Happy Christmas

Upon the bank, she stood  
In the cool  
Of spent emotions.  
She felt, among the leaves,  
The dew  
Of old devotions.

She walked upon the grass,  
Still quavering.  
The winds were like her maids,  
On timid feet,  
Fetching her woven scarves,  
Yet wavering.

-Wallace Stevens, Peter Quince at the Clavier

**Disclaimer: Well, this is old news, but I'll say it anyways. The poem above and the characters in this fan fiction DO NOT belong to me. Never have, never will. Capish? The only thing I'm entitled to is this plot.**

**A/N: Well, hello there! waves at people on the other side of screen Well 'lo and behold here is the... counts on fingers seventh chapter. I'm very excited to have made it this far into the story and I'm also stunned by the fact I have three more chapters until the end of this fanfic. So anyways, sorry about the long author's note.**

Chapter Seven: Happy Christmas

Draco walked the stone streets of Hogsmeade with Crabbe and Goyle at his side. His eyes were roaming over the numerous display windows, but not really taking it all in. His mind wasn't where it usually would have been if it had been earlier into the year. Instead his mind was going over the past two weeks, analyzing everything that had been said and done.

_I don't think I should have told Hermione all that stuff about me, _Draco thought hesitantly. _She shouldn't be involved in the matters of my family. Just her knowing goes beyond the boundary set between us. _Suddenly Draco found himself, Crabbe, and Goyle in front of the shop _Flourish and Blotts_, the bookstore.

Turning to Crabbe and Goyle he said, "I'll meet you two at the Shrieking Shack in a couple of hours."

Before either of them could respond he had already made his way into _Flourish and Blotts_, leaving only his footsteps in the snow as a reminder of his presence.

Inside the bookstore, Draco was met with rows upon rows of books, the musty smell of parchment, and the most noticeable feature: silence. Personally, he had never set foot inside this store before because books had never fallen into one of the categories of his interest.

Draco approached the first shelf and instantly began scanning through the many books there. He saw many titles such as: _One Hundred Cures for the Common Wand Inflicted Wounds, The Life of a Ghost: An Autobiography, Magical Creatures of the World, _and _Ministry of Magic Terms of Politics. _He ignored these volumes and continued his search.

_This all feels so strange. Not only being here in an actual bookstore, a place that I have learned to hate, but rather the way I've suddenly changed. Everything doesn't make sense anymore. The way I've been acting. _Before he could continue his thoughts, Draco's eyes landed on a book that was quite familiar to him.

He grabbed it and headed for the nearest table where he sat down for a moment just examining the used binding of the book. An idea came into his head very unexpectedly. Digging into his pants pocket he found what he was looking for, a phoenix feathered quill and a small container of ink.

Draco opened the cover of the book and dipped his quill into the ink jar. He waited a moment before he started writing on the back of the front cover of the book. His hand flying over the paper, barely keeping up with the pace his mind was producing words to write down.

---

Hermione sat just near the fence separating her from the acres of the Shrieking Shack. At her feet was a bag that contained her purchases she had bought at Hogsmeade. She fingered the string handle of the bag, twisting and untangling the small entwined rope repeatedly.

After a long walk around Hogsmeade, a quick stop for a Butterbeer and a little bit of bargain hunting throughout the stores Hermione was exhausted. She had decided to stop here and rest for a few minutes before heading back to Hogwarts.

_Christmas Break is almost over. _Hermione recalled. _The day after tomorrow school officially starts again. The crazy thing, though, is I don't even care at all. It seems like classes aren't going to be as important as they were before Christmas Break. _Her eyes widened at this thought. Classes not mattering? She did not sound like herself at all.

To divert where her thoughts were moving to she turned her attention to the Shrieking Shack. The old rickety house didn't look like much with its old, crooked windows and chipped paint. Overall, it had a very grungy, abandoned look to it. Like whoever had once inhabited it had been too careless to make it look presentable.

Nevertheless the shack served as almost a kind of representation of what once was here, before Hogsmeade was manufactured. It showed people what used to be here, an old village, according to a book Hermione had once read.

Abruptly, Hermione realized she hadn't been paying attention to the time. With a quick glance at her watch she decided it was time to go back to her warm, inviting common room. With a brief backward glimpse of the Shrieking Shack, Hermione set off for the castle looming over Hogsmeade.

She took her time walking back to Hogwarts. She for once, took notice of all her surroundings that she had ignored throughout the years. Like the snow that was falling gently onto the ground, contributing to the growing layer that was already slumped on the ground. Or the deep, gray sky that was crowded with clouds. Beside her she could here fragments of conversations as other Hogwarts students talked loudly with their friends.

Walking alone made Hermione realize that she hadn't talked to anyone, except Draco, properly for quite awhile. After Hermione had told Ron, Ginny, and Harry she was going to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas break they were a little angry at her. After all, it wasn't normal for them to spend a Christmas apart. _I couldn't go to the Burrow. It just wouldn't have felt right, leaving all this work I had to do unfinished. I guess because of that choice they didn't want to write to me. _Hermione thought forlornly. Of course she had started many letters, of course she had wanted to tell them the things that had happened over Christmas break, and of course she had been scared to, just like she had been scared to tell her parents the truth.

Finally, Hermione noticed that she had stopped walking; she stood in front of Hogwarts grounds. Without any further hesitation she continued into the castle.

---

Hermione sat on her bed, in the dormitory looking through what she had bought from Hogsmeade. Suddenly she remembered she was supposed to meet Draco at 11:50, ten minutes before midnight, to take the potion. She raised her wrist in front of her face to check the time. 11: 45 the watch said. Quickly she grabbed her Hogsmeade bag and ran out of the dormitory, out of the common room, and down many steps until she was at the giant door.

She tried the door, pleading in her head for it to be unlocked. It opened cooperatively and she sprinted out the entrance, not bothering to check if anyone was watching her. Little did she know that a pair of dark eyes gazed at her as she left.

Outside the air was humid. It had finally stopped snowing and all that remained was slippery and frozen ice on the ground. As Hermione made her way up the hill she gazed at the frozen lake bellow and a lone figure pacing back and forth carefully. There was something about night time she loved, the quietness it had most likely.

Hermione finally got to the peak of the hill. She started making her way down, until she slipped on a bit of perilous ice and went tumbling down the hill. She felt the cold of the ground through her clothes and closed her eyes bracing herself for the bottom. She landed on her left arm and could feel it give out; nevertheless she struggled to get up. She ended up back on the ground, a groan of pain emanating from her lips.

"Hermione?" Someone called.

She opened her eyes to see a dim figure standing above her, a hand reaching out for her. She tried to move her left arm, but cringed at the effort. Instead she reached out her right arm and grasped the stranger's arm to pull her up.

She felt slightly dizzy, but managed to stay standing. Beside her was Draco, still holding onto her good arm to support her.

"Let's sit down over here. We still have a couple minutes until you have to drink the potion."

Following his lead she sat down with him across from her. Silence followed his statement once again as the moment turned awkward.

"I think my arm is broken," Hermione said lamely.

"Whatever you do don't move it." With a glance at his watch he said, "It is time."

He reached behind him and got out a bottle with a green liquid inside it and handed it to her. His expression was weary, but patient. With one look up at the sky, Hermione spotted the full moon. She uncorked the bottle and drank its contents quickly.

Hermione's skin turned the palest white, a beacon even brighter than the full moon. Draco stayed beside her, his gaze now curious as he kept his eyes steadily on Hermione. The brightness eventually died down, but Hermione could still feel one place that still had the light's warmth. She reached out her right arm and pulled up the leg of her pants, on her ankle there was a ring of light imprinted on her skin that glowed.

"I got you a gift." Hermione said and handed him the bag.

In return Draco gave her his bag and said softly, "Happy Christmas."

Draco got up and helped Hermione up again. Giving her a quick glance, he left.

---

After Hermione had gone to the Hospital Wing to get her arm wrapped, she sat in the common room in front of a weak fire. She opened up the Hogsmeade bag to find the familiar volume, _Rare Hexes and Their Properties. _Gently she opened the cover, on the back she found a phoenix quill and a letter that said:

_Hermione, _

_I've been thinking back on Christmas Break and the time we spent together. From that very first day in the Divination tower, I knew, subconsciously, that something was about to change._

_Looking back on this whole year, I've realized that nothing goes the way you've planned it. For example, the way things turned out with my family and also what happened with you. Before the prophecy, if my thoughts ever turned to you they would have consisted of disgust and hate because of the people who you're friends with and your above average grades. But now after everything that has happened I think of you as a trusted friend. My only true friend. _

_After you have taken the potion the prophecy will be forgotten. So you must do something for me in return for what I have done. You have to pretend that we never had a bond between us. My family is already angry at me and if they knew about you we'd both be in danger. As a way of going back into the past I give you this book and my quill._

_Your "Anonymous" _

Hermione felt numb, like all possible emotion she could have felt was sucked away. Somehow she knew this time things couldn't be changed, that it was the end of something that had just begun. That this time what was happening could not be intervened with, that it was time to let go.

She tried not to think about what had happened, but it was impossible. Lying on the common room couch, just staring at the waning fire all withheld thoughts seemed to leak out like a flood of water, drowning her brain with too many things at once. She remained still nevertheless, waiting for something that would never seem to come. What it was she didn't even know.

Slowly she could feel herself fading out, sleep catching up to her and overpowering her desire to stay awake. Finally she surrendered.

---

That's how she spent the rest of the day, weaving in and out of consciousness. Hearing voices of a couple of people coming into the common room. One of them trying to shake her awake and asking what was wrong. She didn't open her eyes, but instead she followed her instincts rather than common sense, which seemed to be what she always used to go by.

Time passed slowly, like every second was stretched out farther than the distance of a thousand miles. As if time was played out in slow motion.

Eventually the day went by and a new one came. The sunlight made Hermione squint as she rolled over to hide her eyes from it. She suddenly heard voices above her and once again someone was shaking her, demanding that she got up.

She rolled over and opened her eyes to see Ginny, watching her. Hermione closed her eyes deciding it was an illusion. _Ginny, Ron, and Harry are at the Burrow, not here. _Hermione said to herself mentally.

"Hermione!" The voice yelled.

She opened her eyes yet again to see Ginny standing over her yet again, a look of annoyance on her face.

"What happened to your arm?" Ginny asked.


	9. Chapter 8: A Claim

_Consider what you think justice requires, and decide accordingly. But never give your reasons; for your judgment will probably be right, but your reasons will certainly be wrong. _

_-Lord Mansfield_

**Disclaimer: I give myself no credit for the quote above or the characters that are NOT of my own invention in this and the other chapters I have written. The only thing I have a right to is this plot alone. **

**Author's Note: Well, I'm now trying to get back into the process of writing more regularly since the school semester has been over for a while (which means more time to write for me!). So you can probably expect updates to start coming a lot more regularly on this story until it's finished. Without further ado read on! **

Chapter Eight: A Claim

Hermione sat in Transfiguration with Harry and Ron beside her. Her head was tilted to the right side, while her brown eyes maintained steady eye contact with Professor McGonagall. Right now Hermione's mind was multi-tasking. She partly focused on the professor's lecture and the other half of her thoughts wandered aimlessly.

Out of the corner of her eye she surveyed Harry. He seemed to look very impatient for the class to end, his gaze focused on a corner of the ceiling. Ron, on the other hand, had his head down on his arms making it no secret how much he didn't care about what was being taught.

_They haven't changed one bit,_ Hermione thought with a grin. _Yet they came back to find me completely altered. I wonder what they think of me. _The bell sounded that signified the end of class and Hermione jumped a bit. Ron and Harry were waiting for her at the door, both wearing expressions of impatience now.

Sheepishly Hermione met them at the door and off they went to the Great Hall for lunch. On their way there, Harry and Ron talked to each other casually, but Hermione knew their real motive was to get her to join in on the conversation.

"Harry, did you remember what McGonagall was saying about changing parsnips into spoons?" Ron asked in a strained voice.

"I think McGonagall said something about how you're supposed to flip your wand, catch it, and then point it at the parsnip." Harry offered uncertainly.

So as not to be seen by Ron and Harry, Hermione turned her head towards a near by window and rolled her eyes. She knew better then to fall for this staged act.

Once they got to the Gryffindor table Hermione, Ron, and Harry sat beside Neville, who was currently chatting with Dean about one of Professor Sprout's latest assignments. Ron and Harry followed their example and immediately started a debate about Quidditch teams.

Hermione tiredly fiddled with her food. She hadn't gotten much sleep last night because her mind was so occupied. She had spent half the night finishing a scroll about Doxies and their natural habitat. The other half of the night she had spent thinking about the past Christmas break.

Something about the abruptness of Draco's letter really bugged her. It felt as though while he had been sincere in what he said, there was more to it than he had mentioned. And this made Hermione worry.

"Malfoy seems different," Hermione heard Ron say to Harry. "We've been back from break for a week now and the git hasn't thrown a single insult our way."

Hermione lifted her head slightly, just enough so that she could look over at the Slytherin table. Draco's air did seem rather altered. He didn't sit up as straight as he used to and his hair was sticking up in all directions. Right at that moment Draco's eyes met Hermione's and the look she saw on his face startled her.

He looked distraught. For a moment Hermione felt as though his expression reminded her of something. But of what she couldn't think of. After a while of their continued eye contact, it finally occurred to her. Draco reminded Hermione of herself after she read his Christmas letter.

Hermione noticed that Ron and Harry had stopped talking. She looked away from Draco to see that both of them were watching her with bewildered expressions on their face. Her eyes widened and she could feel a light blush sprinkling her cheeks.

"Hermione," Harry said her name in a high pitched tone. "Ron and I are going to the common room to finish that scroll on Doxies."

Without waiting for Hermione's reply they both got up from the table and walked quickly out of the Great Hall. _I've done it now. Ron and Harry have even more of a reason to think I'm crazy! _Hermione thought angrily.

She leapt up from the table and hastened after them. Just as she neared the stairs she heard Ron and Harry's voices in the distance:

"Blimey Harry! What was that all about?"

"I dunno. But something tells me that it has something to do with how odd Hermione's acting."

"If I find out that Malfoy has put one of his ferret paws on her, I swear it'll be the end of him!"

Hermione felt petrified. How could this happen to her? She only looked at him and all ready Ron and Harry's worries were doubled, if not tripled. It was as if that Christmas Break had snatched away everything that was normal to her. And in its place, she felt a huge barrier that separated her from her old life.

"Hey there," A voice said from behind.

She turned halfway to see Ginny standing beside her, holding onto one of the masts of the staircase.

"How long have you been there?"

"Not long at all. Why?"

Ginny's question was ignored, as Hermione started climbing up the staircase. She didn't look back as she kept going until she was almost halfway to the top.

"WAIT!" Ginny called out.

Hermione stopped and turned around, just as the staircase started moving. She watched as Ginny jumped onto it just as it barely lifted off the ground. Walking slowly, she managed to make it up to where Hermione stood.

"Please," Ginny said firmly. "Tell me what's going on. Why are you so different?"

Hermione studied her face before answering, "Not now. I just don't think I'm ready to talk about it."

"About _what_?" Ginny was a duplicate of her mother, a volcano about to explode. "About how you never talk to any of us? About how you don't raise your hand in class anymore? What happened to the brilliant Hermione I knew? The girl who always cared about her friends more than herself."

The staircase abruptly halted. The sound of happy chattering drifted up from the Great Hall. Up on the stairs, she felt amazingly far from where the voices were emanating.

"I changed. Not because I wanted to, but because I had to. Perhaps when this is over you'll understand. I'm sorry."

Hermione walked up the rest of the staircase and went onto the next one. Behind her, Ginny stayed where she was, unable to decide what to do next.

Draco uttered the password to the Slytherin common room and quickly slipped inside. The dark, rich colors of the room comforted him; it was one thing that was familiar to him in a forest of confusion.

_I can't think about Hermione while all this other stuff is happening, _Draco thought tiredly. _I need to focus on—_

Before he could finish his thought, he noticed the shape of the fire shifting. Draco jumped up from his seat, he anxiously looked around him to be sure he wasn't being watched, and then sat in front of the fireplace.

"Hello Draco," Lucius Malfoy's head was in the fireplace, smirking as usual.

"Father! What are you doing?" He whispered furiously.

"Why, checking on you of course. You haven't answered any of you mother's letters so I decided to see what you were up to."

"I've been very busy lately." Draco said in a stiff tone. "The professors seem to think it's their job to assign us stacks of work to do."

"Oh," Lucius feigned a disappointed tone with a slight edge in it. "I was hoping to talk to you about a matter that has been most pressing."

By the look on his father's face, Draco could tell that there was no way out of this conversation for him. So he remained quiet and waited for him to go on.

"I've been assigned by Cornelius to come to Hogwarts for a certain business affair."

Draco's eyebrows rose in surprise for a moment, but he was careful to keep his reaction in check. In a bored voice he answered, "Really?" And what day are you arriving?"

"In two days time. I look forward to seeing you, Draco." Lucius' head disappeared from the fireplace and once again Draco was alone.

_This is just what I need, _Draco thought sarcastically, _a reason for my father to snoop around. And I'm sure this arrangement isn't just a coincidence. _

Hermione sat in the Great Hall, nibbling on a piece of buttered toast as she looked idly up at the ceiling. It illustrated a picture of a sunrise bursting with brilliant yellows, soft pinks, and bold oranges. Around it were clouds mimicking the colors in a more subdued tone.

Just looking up at the ceiling she could almost feel what it would be like outside. The air would be thick with moisture from the recent shower and very cold. On the grass there would be little bits of ice since it hadn't been cold enough to snow the night before.

Hermione heard talking from a small distance and turned her attention to the Great Hall entrance. She had made it a habit to watch students enter the room as though observing a parade.

A small pack of eager second years made their way to their table. She guessed they were in Ravenclaw because of how excitedly they were talking about their scheduled classes.

Hermione thought she saw something moving on the ceiling. _Probably just some clouds shifting, _she thought logically to herself. When she gazed upwards though, she was proven wrong.

It was a school owl with her Daily Prophet; she paid the required fee, and watched the owl soar upwards towards an open window.

She turned her attention to the front page of the Daily Prophet to see the article title in bold letters:

_The Accused Murderer Discovered_

_Recently it has been discovered that a potential murderer has been found. A couple of weeks ago three murders were committed in Diagon Alley. The victims names were Tiberius Ogden, Bathilda Bagshot, and Miriam Strout. _

_The murderer is said to be no older than sixteen. She is approximately five feet five inches to five feet eight inches with an average body type. Her hair is curly and brown with eyes the same color. If anyone knows a girl who matches this description they are to report it to the Ministry of Magic. _

After finishing the article, Hermione's eyes were drawn to the sketch beside the article. The girl in the picture could almost have been her twin. They had the same face, same wavy thick hair, and the same eyes. The only striking difference was the girl in the sketch seem to have the most pale skin almost like that of a ghost.

Suddenly the loudest gasp was heard, it seemed to bounce off the walls and cause a moment of total silence in the Great Hall. Hermione looked up to see who had done it and realized all eyes were on her. _I must have gasped! _She decided.

Quickly, she jumped up from her seat and ran out of the Great Hall. She was almost to the first set of stairs when she bumped into something solid.

" You're Hermione Granger, if my sources are correct." A deep voice said above her.

Hermione craned her head up two see two very tall strangers, both at least six feet. One was a woman short blonde hair that reached her chin and restless brown eyes. The other was a man with no hair and an almost haughty air. They each clad the same dark robes with the Ministry of Magic symbol on the left shoulder.

She nodded her head, a bit intimidated for words.

" You are to come with us to Dumbledore's office," The woman stated in a smooth tone. " There is a matter we need to discuss."

With that said the man and the woman went on both sides of Hermione and escorted her to Dumbledore's office.

When they arrived the door was open as though anticipating there arrival. So without delay they walked through it.

Dumbledore sat behind his desk his stance calm and business-like, " Hermione, I see you've met Claire Sphelix and Gideon Raydle."

" Professor, tell me what's going on."

" A claim has been made that you are the murderer." Claire answered.

" Do you honestly believe that Miss Granger snuck out of Hogwarts to commit three murders?' Dumbledore asked placidly.

" The way things have been lately, yes. Impossibilities are out of the question." Gideon said with certainty.

Claire stepped forward towards Dumbledore, " She must be taken to the Ministry for questioning—"

At this Dumbledore opened his mouth to protest.

" By the orders of Cornelius."

"Very well," Dumbledore assented. "But first I must talk with Miss Granger, if you don't mind."

Claire and Gideon left the room, the door closing behind them, before Dumbledore turned his attention to Hermione. Slowly, he walked to her side.

Before speaking he aimed his wand at the door performing a silent sound blocking spell, Hermione assumed.

Then he said, "The Ministry is up to no good as usual, except this time they may actually have a lead."

"Are you saying you believe me to be guilty?" Hermione asked, incredulousness seeping into her voice.

"Of course not. I know what has truly happened and I know you _must _defend yourself.

"How did you find out?" Hermione asked curiously.

"That's not important right now—" There was a knock at the door.

Dumbledore continued his voice became more hurried, even a bit frantic, "Remember your gift of knowledge and use it."

"We must leave now." Gideon said his head peeking in from the door that was open ajar.

Hermione turned away from Dumbledore and walked towards the door. As she reached the door knob, she turned and gave Dumbledore the most reassuring smile she could manage.

She knew it was as artificial as Draco's regard for her.


	10. Chapter 9: Trial

_How the heck did we wind up like this?  
Why weren't we able, to see the signs that we missed  
And try to turn the tables  
Now the story's played out like this  
Just like a paperback novel  
Let's rewrite an ending that fits  
Instead of a Hollywood horror_

- Someday, Nickelback

**Disclaimer: The song above and the characters from Harry Potter don't belong to me. I only own this plot and a couple characters I invented. **

**Author's Note: Well, guys I can't believe this is the chapter before the last. I've come a long way with this story and I'm fond of it. I'll be sad when it's finished, but I'm looking forward to writing new stories. **

Chapter Nine: Trial

Hermione walked into the gigantic room. With its high ceilings and huge diameter, she felt it was fit for a palace rather than the courtroom for the Ministry of Magic. Another thing she noticed was everything in the room was made out of wood, from the seats to the podium the minister would stand behind.

She thought back to when she was taken to the Ministry for questioning. She had spoken the truth as best as she could. Of course, that didn't defer the interrogators from issuing a trial.

Her countenance on the outside was vacant. Hermione knew that if they saw her true emotions it could only mean another thing put against her. Inside she silenced the frantic voice in her head saying that the possibility of her being "not guilty" was scant. Forgot the anger that wanted to be released. Instead she pictured Dumbledore and how he would act.

Soon the audience's seats were filled up and with some faces that were well known. There were members of The Order, puzzled and unsure of what they were about to witness.

Cornelius Fudge walked in and a hush swept over the room. Everyone watched him take his seat. The trial had now begun.

The first time Draco had noticed was during breakfast the next morning. He had sat down and as usual his eyes were automatically drawn to the Gryffindor table. The only thing that differed from all the other days was Hermione was no where to be found.

He convinced himself that this didn't mean anything. All it meant was perhaps Hermione was in the common room finishing a scroll that was due a week in advance.

So Draco went to his first class—Potions— preparing himself for another boring day filled with strict professors and lectures on N.E.W.T.S. for next year.

Each class went by in a slow torment. It was as if all the Hogwarts clocks knew he was particularly restless today and were taunting him. He tried to focus on the fact Divination was next as it was his only class with Hermione.

The bell went off and all the students rushed out the door. Draco sat in his seat until the crowd of students disappeared through the door, before following. He walked slowly and deliberately trying to master his emotions like he used to be able to do.

He was up almost all of the stairs, when he noticed there was a figure standing right in front of the door way. As he got closer he felt his stomach shudder unpleasantly. Standing before him with long snow white hair and ministry robes was his father.

"Ah, Draco there you are." Lucius appraised. "Late to class, I see."

" Hello father," Draco said tightly.

"Well, business is done and I meant to speak to you about what brought me here. I'm sure you've been dying to know."

Silence was all Draco gave to this remark, deciding it was better than revealing his anger. _Go on, father, _Draco urged him in his head.

"A while ago a plot was made between the Dark Lord and some of the Slytherin students here to try out some dark magic. And you'll be delighted when you hear who was chosen to test it―"

"_Hermione Granger." _Draco disrupted him, his voice pronouncing the name in what could only be called a growl.

Lucius' face first contorted into anger at being interrupted and then into surprise at Draco's answer. He soon recovered his expression to its usual coolness before continuing, "Thanks to me the Mudblood is now on trial."

Draco couldn't take it anymore. Subtly, he took out his wand and aimed a silent _Stupefy_ at his father. As he turned and ran, he heard a thud on the ground.

The stairs beneath him seemed a blur as he went as fast as he could down many sets of stairs to the common room. Once there, he found the two spell books and swiftly made his way to Dumbledore's office. The halls seemed gigantic with no one, but him, to occupy them. His every footstep echoed with nerve wracking intensity.

When he finally got to the entrance of Dumbledore's office he realized there was one problem. Draco had been so focused on getting to the office that he had forgotten to get the password.

While pacing back and forth, he heard the sound of the moving staircase. Looking up, he noted he had never been so relieved to see Dumbledore than now.

"Oh, Mr. Malfoy what brings you here?" He said inquisitively.

"I need," Draco paused to catch his breath. "I need to help Hermione at the trial"

Dumbledore smiled at this and there was that twinkle in his eye, "Follow me.

"Lilting Lollipops," The staircase began to move and both Dumbledore and Draco stepped onto it. They entered the circular room.

"Professor, how will I get there?" Draco asked.

"Floo powder, of course," He threw a handful in the fire and it turned green.

"Say 'Room 147, Ministry of Magic' and that'll do the trick".

Draco stepped in and repeated the phrase in a yell. Instantly Dumbledore's office disappeared and all he saw was images of fireplaces blurring. The spinning finally stopped and he stepped out of the fireplace. Before him he saw the giant French doors labeled: "Room number, 147".

Hermione sat in her seat rigidly, answering each of Fudge's questions as truthfully as possible. So far the minister had taken all her answers quite civilly, but a couple times she had caught him and the jury members exchanging amused glances.

She could tell that they all believed her to be making up what she knew to be true. Their countenances were smug as though the jury had sat through dozens of trials similar to this one. But Hermione knew it was important to not give up, even if the odds were against her.

Just then the French doors burst open and all eyes turned to see who had entered. Draco Malfoy made his way to Hermione's side, his head held high and eyes focused straight ahead.

"Mr. Draco Malfoy," Fudge assessed him coolly. "This is a private trial. I must ask you to leave, I'm sure your father will understand."

"Oh, I'm sure he will." Draco slammed the two spell books on the podium beside him before continuing, "But I'm not here because of him. I'm here as a witness to Hermione."

"Well, unfortunately we were just finishing as you came in. Perhaps if you were punctual―"

"Liar! Let him speak," A voice yelled from somewhere in the audience. Several other voices echoed the same opinion, until the room ringed with earsplitting protests.

"QUIET!" A woman in the jury screamed. "Mr. Malfoy will have twenty minutes to speak."

In a calm voice full of conviction, he told his side of Hermione's story. He began from the day he saw the Slytherins hex Hermione. Continued to speak of when he went to the library and looked up the hex. Finally, he got to the Anti-hex and its curing effect. Draco left out the personal parts of the story and said it all as factually as possible.

"A well rehearsed defense. But I happen to know the Detracciónelmal curse is not made accessible to students." Fudge replied artfully.

"If that's so then how come I happened to find it in the Restricted Section?" Draco took hold of both of the books and handed them to Fudge. "See for yourself. Both passages are dog-eared in each of the books."

Fudge opened the first book and perused the section disinterestedly. He paused for a couple of seconds before reaching for the next book to peruse in the same manner.

"There is no proof that this hex was preformed on the girl," Fudge argued impatiently.

"Minister, if you would turn to page ninety-nine of _Rare Hexes and Their Properties _and read it aloud."

Skeptically Fudge complied, "_The only certain way to be sure the Detracciónelmal curse is withdrawn from the victim is simple. There must be a silver ring that glows on his or her ankle..." _

Once Fudge had finished reading Draco turned to Hermione and held out his had. She stepped out from behind the podium, still holding his hand tightly.

"May I?" Draco asked Hermione, gesturing at her right ankle.

"Of course," she said with a tight lipped smile.

Draco pulled up Hermione's right pant leg to reveal the ring of glowing light. Even in the large room with the sky lights, her ankle glowed as radiantly as ever. All around them gasps were heard and loud muttering.

Fudge used his hand to pound on his podium. Immediately everyone in the room went quiet.

The woman in the jury spoke once more in a serene carrying voice, "In a week's time we will decide the verdict of this case. Miss Hermione Granger will receive a letter at Hogwarts with the final decision."

"Court dismissed," Fudge said through clenched teeth.


	11. Epilogue: Final Verdict

_I seek the truth in you  
The weak lie is not you  
So speak up, yes you_

- The Truth in You, Sylvia Chidi

**Disclaimer: The poem above is NOT mine and neither are the Harry Potter characters. The only things that are mine are this plot, the O. C's, and the poem at the end of the story. **

**Author's Note: I am proud to present you with the last chapter of this story. And I just want to thank everyone who helped and encouraged me along the way! I owe it to you guys! Please tell me what you think at the end! **

Epilogue: Final Verdict

Draco walked through the halls in his usual fashion: head held high and a bounce in his step. He ignored the glares and whispers that seemed to follow him everywhere now after his return from the trial a week ago. Apparently news of the trial had leaked out and everyone (including the Slytherin house) was against him for standing up for a "murderer".

But none of that mattered.

What was important to him was the girl who walked beside him. She too held her head high and fixed her eyes straight ahead. Despite all this he wasn't fooled. Hermione was trying hard to not show the pain she felt. Draco knew that Harry, Ron, and Ginny had stopped talking to her and that she felt the brunt of it. And instinctively he knew there was nothing he could do to help.

They continued up a couple flights of stairs in silence. Neither of them looked at each other, both of them too occupied in their thoughts. Through this method the walk to the common room went by quickly. Before either of them knew it they were standing at the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Draco said with a small smile.

"Yes, you will," Hermione gave a lopsided grin of her own.

With that said, she turned to the portrait and then faltered for a few seconds. She went back over to Draco and surprised him with a hug. The only thing he could do was place his arms around her complacently. Against his cheek he could feel her soft wavy hair and could smell cinnamon .

The hug ended as abruptly as it began. Before he knew it she had gone through the portrait hole and he was alone. He walked over to the wall and slid into a seated position. He let his head drop to his knees and closed his eyes. He must have fallen asleep sitting there. The next thing he heard were footsteps approaching where he was sitting.

"It was you, wasn't it? You turned Hermione into a filthy murderer!"

Draco looked up to see that Ron had been the accuser. Beside him was Harry his mouth in a scowl.

"I didn't think I could hate you even more than before, but I do," Ron continued heatedly.

Before he could say more Draco cut in, "You ought to know what really happened before spitting out accusations, Weasel. But then again, I suppose you weren't taught how to properly behave with others. Turns out I was protecting Hermione!"

"Since when have you become the good bloke? You sure you didn't just hit your head very hard during Quidditch practice?" Harry asked mockingly.

"Haven't you ever heard the saying 'Don't judge a book by its cover'? I never wanted to be anything like my father, I was forced into it."

"What does this even have to do with Hermione?" Ron asked impatiently.

"I saw a group of Slytherins place a curse on Hermione and then she fainted. I realized this was my one opportunity to do something that I wanted, not something my father threatened me to do." Draco paused, his face softening.

Both Ron and Harry remained silent appraising the sudden change in Draco's expression.

"So I helped her. Then somewhere along the way I feel in love with her. Looking back, I believe it was because she was and is everything I had always dreamed of being." Draco finished speaking, his face slightly vulnerable .

He turned and walked away, not bothering to look back. Behind him Harry and Ron wore stunned expressions.

The next day Draco and Hermione are in the kitchens together eating lunch so as to not draw more attention to them. The house elves are bustling around them, making lots of clanging noises, getting dishes prepared to send up. Every so often one of the house elves would come over and ask:

"Is there anything thing else the mister and miss need?"

Hermione would smile, say no, and thank the house elf appreciatively. While Draco would try not to lose his patience with constantly being interrupted from the conversation he was having with Hermione. While another house elf was asking them the same question for the sixth time, Hagrid hurriedly burst in. Immediately he made his way over to Draco and Hermione with a letter in his hand.

"Fer you, Hermione. It came an hour ago, there 'bouts." He gave her an uncertain smile and walked out.

Hermione stared at the front for a couple moments, studying the return address with her eyebrows furrowed.

"Open it. Just looking at it won't do any good," Draco said encouragingly.

Hermione handed it to him to open without saying anything. As she watched him tear the top of the envelope into shreds, she smiled. If it was her she would have opened the letter carefully making sure to preserve it in its perfect condition. Her smile faded as she watched his solemn eyes scan over the letters contents. She became nervous as she searched his expression for traces of disappointment. Nothing.

Draco looked up from the letter into her eyes. His expression went from intense to a huge grin. He picked her up from under her arms and twirled her around.

"You're innocent! They dropped all charges!" He exclaimed joyfully and in turn Hermione laughed.

There was a loud rattling behind them and they both turned their heads. While Draco had been spinning Hermione around, they had knocked down a bunch of pots and pans. Now they were confronted by a dozen angry house elves.

"Mister and Miss must get out! They have caused a big mess," one of the house elves said.

Before they knew what was happening they were both pushed out of the kitchen by a herd of house elves. Outside by the portrait of fruit, both of them burst out laughing.

After Hermione caught her breath she said, "Ron and Harry talked to me this morning. You know, about what happened yesterday with you guys."

"They told you?" He asked incredulously.

"Yes," Hermione nodded. "And we're on our way to becoming friends again, I think."

"Oh, that's great." Draco said half hearted.

"But there's more." Hermione paused studying him carefully, "They told me that you l-l-love me."

Draco stared at her wide-eyed and mesmerized.

"I want to know. Is it true?"

"Yes," Draco hesitated for a moment, thinking. "Do you remember the kiss?"

Hermione nodded before saying, "I didn't really know what to make of it. It was that day I saw a different side of you almost and I didn't know if it was really you."

"I loved you then, but I felt ashamed at my feelings, at first, and also at being so forward."

"I should have shown you my feelings. But I was so concerned about losing my friends and I was confused. But I understand now." She tilted her head up to his and kissed him. The feel of her lips against his was as exhilarating as flying on a broomstick—only better.

Hermione drew back, smiling up at him, "This reminds me of a poem I once read."

Draco put on his smirk, "How did I know you were going to say—"

" _Day by Day,_

_My life goes on. _

_Excitement at every turn,_

_My life goes on._

_A Promise Waiting To Be Fulfilled"_

_THE END_

**Author's Note:** **So what did you guys think? Would you call this chapter cheesy or a big ball of fluff? I'm still trying to decide myself which one it is XD I'd love to hear everyone's opinions and I'm also open to constructive criticism!**


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